Most Americans Worry About Economy's Impact on
Personal Finances

December 18, 2003 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Nearly 75% of
Americans are worried about how the current economy will
affect their household's finances and less than one half are
satisfied with their household's current financial
outlook.

Despite their concerns though, Americans spend more time
worrying about their finances than managing them. Even
though 50% of those surveyed by
American Express Financial Advisors in compiling the
Personal Economy Index
believe they could benefit from an expert looking at their
personal finances, only 10% have a formal written financial
plan to help them reach their future financial goals
.

Not surprising then is that o
ne out of four Americans does not seek advice when making
decisions regarding savings and investments.
This may be due to the fact that 40% of those polled do
not believe they have enough money to warrant a
financial advisor.

“The only economy we can control is our own personal
economy and this is the one that matters most,”
Charlotte Stallings, Vice President Investment
Strategies, American Express Funds
. “The best way to gain control of a personal economy is to
develop a plan with the guidance of a financial
professional.”

The picture may be getting more blurred with time. One
third of the survey’s respondents reported that their
financial situation has
worsened over the past two years.
Of those, 40% pointed to an increase in health-care
costs are a contributing factor for the decline and a third
cited the decline in the stock market as factors.

By gender, women are more pessimistic than men about
their financial futures and how the current economy will
affect their household’s finances.
This in turn translates to more anxiety down the road, as
women are also
less likely to feel they are “right on track” on the
road to their financial destination and less confident that
they will be able to retire when they want to.

Age differences also emerged in savings and confidence
patterns.
One in four young single adults, between the ages of 18 and
39, feel they are “lost and in need of map” or “going in
the wrong direction” on the road to their
financial destination.
Looking for a rock to anchor to, this group is more
likely (53%) to rely most on friends and relatives for
advice on savings and investments compared to empty nesters
– a group over the age of 40, married, no kids in household
– who rely on friends/relatives (18%) versus their
financial advisor (36%).
Empty nesters (53%) are also more likely to be satisfied
with their current financial situation and the most secure
when compared to other groups including young single adults
(38%) and married couples with children (40%).

“The survey shows that the majority of Americans do not
have a clear road map for their financial future,” stated
Stallings. “Rather than taking control of their personal
economies many people are at the mercy of outside
influences. This is alarming.”

Those outside influences are made up of a combination
both events now, and those predicted for the future.
In fact, the survey says four out of five people will face
at least one major life event in the next one to two years
that will have an impact on their personal economy. These
events include: